The men in the trenches, especially on the offensive side, don't always get the same level of attention that is showered on the big offensive and defensive stars in a football game.
But while quarterbacks, running backs, and receivers and even flashy defensive stars hog the spotlight, there's an old axiom often reinforced by the game's legendary coaches: football games are won in the trenches.
Some of Georgia's top high school football programs heading into 2025 feature offensive or defensive lines with multiple ranked recruits. Two of Georgia's top programs actually have multiple prospects on both their offensive and defensive lines.
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Buford has the No. 4 ranked offensive line in our preseason rankings, and the Wolves' defensive line checks in at No. 2. Gainesville, meanwhile, is No. 2 in our offensive line unit rankings, and the Red Elephants' defensive line is No. 5.
Several of these units will go head-to-head in 2025:
- 7 p.m. EST, Aug. 22 — Rabun Gap-Nacoochee Eagles/GA No. 1 Offensive Line at Grayson (Loganville) Rams/GA No. 1 Defensive Line
- 7:30 p.m. EST, Aug. 22 — Buford Wolves/GA No. 4 Offensive Line at Benedictine (Savannah) Cadets/GA No. 4 Defensive Line
- 7:30 p.m. EST, Sept. 12 — Douglas County (Douglasville) Tigers/GA No. 3 Offensive Line at Buford Wolves/GA No. 2 Defensive Line
- 7:30 p.m. EST, Oct. 3 — Buford Wolves/GA No. 4 Offensive Line at Collins Hill (Suwanee) Eagles/GA No. 6 Defensive Line
So, what do the results from 2024 say about these teams that are built for warfare on the front lines? Does being superior in the trenches translate to success when it comes to wins and losses?
Georgia's Top Offensive Line Units
We ranked all of Georgia's offensive lines with at least two ranked recruits from 247sports.com, and then reviewed the playoff resumes and overall records for each team on our list in 2024:
- Rabun Gap-Nacoochee Eagles — NCISAA state champion; 11-2 overall record
- Gainesville Red Elephants — GHSA Class 5A first-round playoff loss; 7-4 overall record
- Douglas County (Douglasville) Tigers — GHSA Class 6A state semifinalist, 11-3 overall record
- Buford Wolves — GHSA Class 6A state semifinalist, 12-2 overall record
- East Coweta (Sharpsburg) Indians — GHSA Class 6A first-round playoff loss; 4-7 overall record
- Carver (Columbus) Tigers — GHSA Class 2A state champion; 14-1 overall record
All six of the teams in our offensive line rankings made the playoffs, and four of the six made it to at least the state semifinals in their respective divisions. The cumulative record of the six teams was 59-19 (.756) – and seven of those losses were accrued by one team on the list, the East Coweta (Sharpsburg) Indians, who still made the playoffs at 4-7.
Georgia's Top Defensive Line Units
We also ranked all of the defensive lines in Georgia with two or more ranked recruits. Two of the teams on that list – the Buford Wolves and the Gainesville Red Elephants – were also on our list of top offensive line units.
- Grayson (Loganville) Rams – GHSA Class 6A state champion; 14-1 overall record
- Buford Wolves – GHSA Class 6A state semifinalist; 12-2 overall record
- Blessed Trinity Catholic (Roswell) Titans – GHSA Class 4A state semifinalist; 11-2 overall record
- Benedictine (Savannah) Cadets – GHSA Class 4A second-round playoff loss; 7-5 overall record
- Gainesville Red Elephants – GHSA Class 5A first-round playoff loss; 7-4 overall record
- Collins Hill (Suwanee) Eagles – GHSA Class 6A state quarterfinalist; 11-2 overall record
In the case of teams with an elite defensive line in Georgia, they were even more likely to win at a high rate than teams with a dominant offensive line, accumulating an overall record of 62-16 (.795).
Looking at the list, collectively, and accounting for the two teams that appear on both lists, the cumulative record of the 10 teams, all of them postseason qualifiers, was 102-29 – a win percentage of .779. Three of the 10 teams won state championships at their respective levels, and half of them made it to at least the semifinals of the state playoffs.
While, admittedly, a small sample that doesn't account for each team's potential riches in other position groups, it still suggests a correlation between winning and having high-level talent on the offensive and defensive lines. After all, three of the state's four Class 6A semifinalists – Georgia's highest classification – are part of this group along with half of Class 6A's quarterfinalists.
It also lends even more credence to that old axiom about football games being won in the trenches.
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